William Goebel Gubernatorial election of 1899 In which state was the Gubernatorial election that William Goebel was involved in? Louisville -
Who was Goebel's opponent in this race?
Who was Goebel's opponent in the election race of 1899?
Three men sought the Democratic nomination for governor at the 1899 party convention in Louisville - Goebel, Wat Hardin, and William J. Stone. When Hardin appeared to be the front-runner for the nomination, Stone and Goebel agreed to work together against him. Stone's supporters would back whomever Goebel picked to preside over the convention. In exchange, half the delegates from Louisville, who were pledged to Goebel, would vote to nominate Stone for governor. Goebel would then drop out of the race, but would name many of the other officials on the ticket. As word of the plan spread, Hardin dropped out of the race, believing he would be beaten by the Stone-Goebel alliance.  Goebel took a calculated risk by breaking the agreement once his choice was installed as presiding officer. Hardin, seeing that Stone had been betrayed and hoping he might now be able to secure the nomination, re-entered the contest. Several chaotic ballots resulted in no clear majority for anyone, and Goebel's hand-picked chairman announced the man with the lowest vote total in the next canvass would be dropped. It turned out to be Stone. This put Stone's backers in a difficult position. They were forced to choose between Hardin, who was seen as a pawn of the railroads, or Goebel, who had turned against their man. Enough of them sided with Goebel to give him the nomination. Goebel's tactics, while not illegal, were unpopular and divided the party. A disgruntled faction calling themselves the "Honest Election Democrats" held a separate convention in Lexington and nominated John Y. Brown for governor.  Republican William S. Taylor defeated both Democratic candidates in the general election, but his margin over Goebel was only 2,383 votes. Democrats in the General Assembly began making accusations of voting irregularities in some counties, but in a surprise decision, the Board of Elections created by the Goebel Election Law and manned by three hand-picked Goebel Democrats, ruled 2-1 that the disputed ballots should count, saying the law gave them no legal power to reverse the official county results and that under the Kentucky Constitution the power to review the election lay in the General Assembly. The Assembly then invalidated enough Republican ballots to give the election to Goebel. The Assembly's Republican minority was incensed, as were voters in traditionally Republican districts. For several days, the state hovered on the brink of a possible civil war. CANNOTANSWER
Wat Hardin, and William J. Stone.
William Justus Goebel (January 4, 1856 – February 3, 1900) was an American Democratic politician who served as the 34th governor of Kentucky for four days in 1900, having been sworn in on his deathbed a day after being shot by an assassin. Goebel remains the only state governor in the United States to ever be assassinated while in office.

Goebel was born to Wilhelm and Augusta Goebel (), German immigrants from Hanover. He studied at the Hollingsworth Business College in the mid-1870s and became an apprentice in John W. Stevenson's law firm. While Goebel lacked the social qualities like public speaking, which were common to politicians, various authors referred to him as an intellectual man. He served in the Kentucky Senate, campaigning for populist causes like railroad regulation, which won him many allies and supporters.   

In 1895, Goebel engaged in a duel with John Lawrence Sanford, a former Confederate general staff officer turned cashier. According to the witnesses, both men then drew their pistols, but no one was sure who fired first. Sanford was killed; Goebel pled self-defense and was acquitted.   

During the 1899 Kentucky gubernatorial election, Goebel divided his party with his political tactics to win the nomination for governorship at a time when Kentucky Republicans were gaining strength, having elected the party's first governor four years previously. These dynamics led to a close contest between Goebel and William S. Taylor. In the politically chaotic climate that resulted, Goebel won the election, but was assassinated and died three days in office. Everyone charged in connection with the murder was either acquitted or eventually pardoned, and the identity of his assassin remains unknown.

Early life

Heritage and career 
Wilhelm Justus Goebel was born January 4, 1856, in either Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, or Albany Township, Bradford County, Pennsylvania, to Wilhelm and Augusta Goebel (), immigrants from Hanover, Germany. The eldest of the four children, he was born two months premature and weighed less than . His father served as a private in Company B, 82nd Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment during the American Civil War, and Goebel's mother raised her children alone, teaching them much about their German heritage. Wilhelm spoke German until the age of six, but he embraced American culture, adopting the English spelling of his name as "William".

After being discharged from the army in 1863, Goebel's father moved his family to Covington, Kentucky. Goebel attended school in Covington and was then apprenticed to a jeweler in Cincinnati, Ohio. After a brief time at Hollingsworth Business College in mid 1870s, he became an apprentice in the law firm of John W. Stevenson, who had served as governor of Kentucky from 1867 to 1871. Goebel eventually became Stevenson's partner and executor of his estate. Goebel graduated from Cincinnati Law School in 1877, and enrolled at the Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, before joining the practice of Kentucky state representative John G. Carlisle. He then rejoined Stevenson in Covington in 1883, after the death of Stevenson's previous partner.

Personal characteristics
According to author James C. Klotter, Goebel was not known as a particularly genial person in public. He belonged to few social organizations and greeted none but his closest friends with a smile or handshake. He was rarely linked romantically with a woman and was the only governor of Kentucky who never married. Journalist Irvin S. Cobb remarked, "I never saw a man who, physically, so closely suggested the reptilian as this man did." Others commented on his "contemptuous" lips, "sharp" nose, and "humorless" eyes. Goebel was not a gifted public speaker, often eschewing flowery imagery and relying on his deep, powerful voice and forceful delivery to drive home his points. Klotter wrote, "When coupled to somewhat demagogic appeals and to an occasional phrase that stirred emotions, this delivery made for an effective speech, but never more than an average one." While lacking in the social qualities common to politicians, one characteristic that served Goebel well in the political arena was his intellect. Goebel was well-read, and supporters and opponents both conceded that his mental prowess was impressive. Cobb concluded that he had never been more impressed with a man's intellect than he had been with Goebel's.

Political career

Kentucky Senate 

In 1887, James William Bryan vacated his seat in the Kentucky Senate to pursue the office of lieutenant governor. Goebel decided to seek election to the vacant seat representing Covington. He campaigned on the platform of railroad regulation and labor causes. Like Stevenson, he insisted on the right of the people to control chartered corporations. The Union Labor Party had risen to power in the area with a platform similar to Goebel's. However, while Goebel had to stick close to his allies in the Democratic Party, the Union Labor Party courted the votes of both Democrats and Republicans and made the election close, which was decided in Goebel's favor by just 56 votes. During his first term as senator, the State Railroad Commission increased to over $3,000,000 tax evaluation on the property of Louisville and Nashville Railroad. A proposal from pro-railroad legislators in the Kentucky House of Representatives to abolish Kentucky's Railroad Commission was passed and sent to the Senate. Cassius Marcellus Clay responded by proposing a committee to investigate lobbying by the railroad industry. Goebel served on the committee, which uncovered significant violations by the railroad lobby. He also helped defeat the bill to abolish the Railroad Commission in the Senate. These actions increased his popularity and he was elected senator unopposed in 1889 for a full term. Goebel was well able to broker deals with fellow lawmakers and was equally able and willing to break the deals if a better deal came along. His tendency to use the state's political machinery to advance his agenda earned him the nickname "William the Conqueror".

Goebel served as a delegate to Kentucky's fourth constitutional convention in 1890, which produced the current Constitution of Kentucky. Despite being a delegate, Goebel showed little interest in participating in the process of creating a new Constitution. The convention was in session for approximately 250 days, but Goebel was present for approximately only 100 days. However, he did secure the inclusion of the Railroad Commission in the new Constitution. As a Constitutional entity, the Commission could only be abolished by an amendment ratified by a popular vote. This effectively protected the Commission from ever being unilaterally dismantled by the General Assembly. Klotter wrote, "Goebel used the constitution as a vehicle to enact laws which he had not been able to pass in the more conservative legislature." Goebel won another term in 1893 by a three-to-one margin over his Republican opponent. By 1894, he had been elected as the President pro tempore of the Kentucky Senate.

Duel with John Sanford

In 1895, Goebel engaged in what many observers considered to be a duel with John Lawrence Sanford. Sanford, a former Confederate general staff officer turned cashier, had clashed with Goebel before. Goebel's successful campaign to remove tolls from some of Kentucky's turnpikes cost Sanford a large amount of money. Many believed that Sanford had blocked Goebel's appointment to the Kentucky Court of Appeals, in retaliation. Incensed, Goebel had written an article in a local newspaper referring to Sanford as "Gonorrhea John." On April 11, 1895, Goebel and two acquaintances went to Covington to cash a check. Goebel suggested they avoid Sanford's bank, but Sanford, standing outside the bank, spoke to the men before they could cross the street to a different bank. Sanford greeted Goebel's friends, offering them his left hand. However, Goebel noticed that Sanford's right hand was on a pistol concealed in his pocket. Having come armed himself, Goebel clutched his revolver in his pocket. Sanford confronted Goebel and said, "I understand that you assume authorship of that article." "I do", replied Goebel.

The shooting took place at 1:30 p.m. According to the witnesses, both men then drew their pistols, but no one was sure which had fired first. One of the witnesses – W. J. Hendricks, the attorney general of Kentucky, said "I don't know who shot first, the shots were so close together." Another witness, Frank P. Helm, said "I was right up against them and really thought at first that I had, myself, been shot." Sanford's bullet passed through Goebel's coat and ripped his trousers, but left him uninjured. Goebel's shot fatally struck Sanford in the head; Sanford died five hours later. Goebel pled self-defense and was acquitted. The acquittal was significant because the Kentucky constitution prohibited dueling. If Goebel had been convicted of dueling, he would have been ineligible to hold any public office. The shooting made Goebel unpopular among Kentucky's Confederate veterans, who also noted his non-southern background and his father's service in the Union army.

Goebel Election Law
Kentucky Democrats, who controlled the General Assembly believed that county election commissioners had been unfair in selecting local election officials, and had contributed to the election of Republican governor William O. Bradley in 1895. Goebel proposed a bill, known as the "Goebel Election Law", which passed along strict party lines and over Governor Bradley's veto, created a three-member state election commission, appointed by the General Assembly, to choose the county election commissioners. It allowed the Democratic-controlled General Assembly to appoint only Democrats to the election commission. Many voters decried the bill as a self-serving attempt by Goebel to increase his political power, and the election board remained a controversial issue until its abolition in a special session of the legislature in 1900. Goebel became the subject of much opposition from constituencies of both parties in Kentucky after the passage of the law.

Gubernatorial election of 1899

In 1896, when William Jennings Bryan electrified the Democratic National Convention with his Cross of Gold speech and won the nomination for president, many delegates from Kentucky bolted the convention. Various Kentuckian politicians believed that free silver was a populist idea, and it did not belong to the Democratic Party. Subsequently, Republican William McKinley won the 1896 presidential election, carrying Kentucky. Author Nicholas C. Burckel believed that this set the stage for "horripilating gubernatorial election of 1899". Three men sought the Democratic nomination for governor at the 1899 party convention in Louisville – Goebel, Parker Watkins Hardin, and William Johnson Stone. When Hardin appeared to be the front-runner for the nomination, Stone and Goebel agreed to work together against him. They concluded that Stone's supporters would endorse whomever Goebel picked to preside over the convention. In exchange, half the delegates from Louisville, who were pledged to Goebel, would vote to nominate Stone. Goebel would then drop out of the race, but would name many of the other officials on the ticket. Both men agreed that, should one of them be defeated or withdraw from the race, they would encourage their delegates to vote for the other rather than support Hardin. As word of the plan spread, Hardin dropped out of the race, believing he would be beaten by the Stone–Goebel alliance. When the convention convened on June 24, several chaotic ballots resulted in no clear majority for anyone, and Goebel's hand-picked chairman announced the man with the lowest vote total in the next canvass would be dropped, which turned out to be Stone. This put Stone's supporters in a difficult position, and were forced to choose between Hardin, who was seen as a pawn of the railroads, or Goebel. Enough of them sided with Goebel to give him the nomination. Goebel's tactics, while not illegal, were unpopular and divided the party. A disgruntled faction calling themselves the "Honest Election Democrats" held a separate convention in Lexington and nominated John Y. Brown as their gubernatorial candidate. 

Republican William S. Taylor defeated both Democratic candidates in the general election, but his margin over Goebel was only 2,383 votes. Democrats in the General Assembly began making accusations of voting irregularities in some counties, but in a surprise decision, the Board of Elections created by the Goebel Election Law, manned by three hand-picked pro-Goebel Democrats, ruled 2–1 that the disputed ballots should count, saying the law gave them no legal power to reverse the official county results and that under the Kentucky Constitution the power to review the election lay in the General Assembly. The Assembly then invalidated enough Republican ballots to give the election to Goebel. The Assembly's Republican minority was incensed, as were voters in traditionally Republican districts. For several days, the state hovered on the brink of a possible civil war.

Assassination and legacy

Shooting and death 
While the election results remained in dispute, Goebel, despite being warned of a rumored assassination plot against him, walked flanked by two bodyguards to the Old State Capitol on the morning of January 30, 1900. Reports conflict about what happened, but some five or six shots were fired from the nearby State Building, one striking Goebel in the chest and wounding him seriously. Taylor, serving as governor pending a final decision on the election, called out the militia and ordered the General Assembly into a special session in London, Kentucky – a Republican area. The Republican minority obeyed the call and went to London. Democrats resisted the move, many going instead to Louisville. Both groups claimed authority, but the Republicans were too few to muster a quorum. That evening, the day after being shot, Goebel was sworn in as governor. In his only act, Goebel signed a proclamation to dissolve the militia called up by Taylor, which was ignored by the militia's Republican commander. Despite the care of 18 physicians, Goebel died the afternoon of February 3, 1900. Journalists recalled his last words as "Tell my friends to be brave, fearless, and loyal to the common people." Skeptic Irvin S. Cobb uncovered another story from some in the room at the time. On having eaten his last meal, the governor supposedly remarked "Doc, that was a damned bad oyster." Goebel remains the only American governor ever assassinated while in office. In respect of Goebel's displeasure with the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, his body was transported not by the L&N direct line, but circuitously from his hometown of Covington north across the Ohio River to Cincinnati, and then south to Frankfort on the Queen and Crescent Railroad.

After Goebel's death, amid controversy, the Kentucky Court of Appeals ruled that the General Assembly had acted legally in declaring Goebel the winner of the election. That decision was appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States. Arguments were presented in the case Taylor v. Beckham on April 30, 1900, but on May 21, the justices decided 8–1 not to hear the case, allowing the Court of Appeals' decision to stand. Goebel's lieutenant governor J. C. W. Beckham ascended to the governorship.

Trials, investigations, and legacy 
During the ensuing assassination investigation, suspicion naturally focused on deposed governor Taylor, who fled to Indianapolis, under the looming threat of indictment. The governor of Indiana refused to extradite Taylor, and he was thus never questioned about his knowledge of the plot to kill Goebel. Taylor was later pardoned in 1909 by Beckham's successor, Republican governor Augustus E. Willson. Sixteen people, including Taylor, were eventually indicted in Goebel's assassination. Three accepted immunity from prosecution in exchange for testimony. Only five ever went to trial, two of those being acquitted. Convictions were handed down against Taylor's Secretary of State Caleb Powers, Henry Youtsey, and Jim Howard. The prosecution charged that Powers was the mastermind, having a political opponent killed so that Taylor could stay in office. Youtsey was an alleged intermediary, and Howard, who was said to have been in Frankfort to seek a pardon from Taylor for the killing of a man in a family feud, was accused of being the actual assassin. Republican appeal courts overturned Powers' and Howard's convictions, though Powers was tried three more times, resulting in two convictions and a hung jury, and Howard was tried and convicted twice more. Both men were pardoned in 1908 by Willson. Youtsey, who received a life imprisonment, did not appeal, but after two years in prison, he turned state's evidence. In Howard's second trial, Youtsey claimed that Taylor had discussed an assassination plot with Youtsey and Howard. He backed the prosecution's claims that Taylor and Powers worked out the details, he acted as an intermediary, and Howard fired the shot. On cross-examination, the defense pointed out contradictions in the details of Youtsey's story, but Howard was still convicted. Youtsey was paroled in 1916 and was pardoned in 1919 by Democratic governor James D. Black. Of those allegedly involved in the killing: Taylor died in 1928; Powers died in 1932; Youtsey died in 1942. Most historians agree that the identity of the assassin of Goebel is unclear. Goebel Avenue in Elkton, Kentucky, and Goebel Park in Covington, Kentucky are named in Goebel's honor.

See also 

 History of Kentucky
 List of assassinated American politicians
 List of unsolved murders

Notes

References

Works cited

Further reading

 

1856 births
1900 deaths
1900 murders in the United States
19th-century American politicians
American people of German descent
Assassinated American politicians
Burials at Frankfort Cemetery
Deaths by firearm in Kentucky
Democratic Party state governors of the United States
American duellists
Governors of Kentucky
Kentucky Democrats
Kentucky state senators
Kenyon College alumni
Male murder victims
People from Carbondale, Pennsylvania
People murdered in Kentucky
Populism in the United States
University of Cincinnati alumni
Unsolved murders in the United States
William Justus Goebel (January 4, 1856 – February 3, 1900) was an American Democratic politician who served as the 34th governor of Kentucky for four days in 1900, having been sworn in on his deathbed a day after being shot by an assassin. Goebel remains the only state governor in the United States to ever be assassinated while in office.

Goebel was born to Wilhelm and Augusta Goebel (), German immigrants from Hanover. He studied at the Hollingsworth Business College in the mid-1870s and became an apprentice in John W. Stevenson's law firm. While Goebel lacked the social qualities like public speaking, which were common to politicians, various authors referred to him as an intellectual man. He served in the Kentucky Senate, campaigning for populist causes like railroad regulation, which won him many allies and supporters.   

In 1895, Goebel engaged in a duel with John Lawrence Sanford, a former Confederate general staff officer turned cashier. According to the witnesses, both men then drew their pistols, but no one was sure who fired first. Sanford was killed; Goebel pled self-defense and was acquitted.   

During the 1899 Kentucky gubernatorial election, Goebel divided his party with his political tactics to win the nomination for governorship at a time when Kentucky Republicans were gaining strength, having elected the party's first governor four years previously. These dynamics led to a close contest between Goebel and William S. Taylor. In the politically chaotic climate that resulted, Goebel won the election, but was assassinated and died three days in office. Everyone charged in connection with the murder was either acquitted or eventually pardoned, and the identity of his assassin remains unknown.

Early life

Heritage and career 
Wilhelm Justus Goebel was born January 4, 1856, in either Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, or Albany Township, Bradford County, Pennsylvania, to Wilhelm and Augusta Goebel (), immigrants from Hanover, Germany. The eldest of the four children, he was born two months premature and weighed less than . His father served as a private in Company B, 82nd Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment during the American Civil War, and Goebel's mother raised her children alone, teaching them much about their German heritage. Wilhelm spoke German until the age of six, but he embraced American culture, adopting the English spelling of his name as "William".

After being discharged from the army in 1863, Goebel's father moved his family to Covington, Kentucky. Goebel attended school in Covington and was then apprenticed to a jeweler in Cincinnati, Ohio. After a brief time at Hollingsworth Business College in mid 1870s, he became an apprentice in the law firm of John W. Stevenson, who had served as governor of Kentucky from 1867 to 1871. Goebel eventually became Stevenson's partner and executor of his estate. Goebel graduated from Cincinnati Law School in 1877, and enrolled at the Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, before joining the practice of Kentucky state representative John G. Carlisle. He then rejoined Stevenson in Covington in 1883, after the death of Stevenson's previous partner.

Personal characteristics
According to author James C. Klotter, Goebel was not known as a particularly genial person in public. He belonged to few social organizations and greeted none but his closest friends with a smile or handshake. He was rarely linked romantically with a woman and was the only governor of Kentucky who never married. Journalist Irvin S. Cobb remarked, "I never saw a man who, physically, so closely suggested the reptilian as this man did." Others commented on his "contemptuous" lips, "sharp" nose, and "humorless" eyes. Goebel was not a gifted public speaker, often eschewing flowery imagery and relying on his deep, powerful voice and forceful delivery to drive home his points. Klotter wrote, "When coupled to somewhat demagogic appeals and to an occasional phrase that stirred emotions, this delivery made for an effective speech, but never more than an average one." While lacking in the social qualities common to politicians, one characteristic that served Goebel well in the political arena was his intellect. Goebel was well-read, and supporters and opponents both conceded that his mental prowess was impressive. Cobb concluded that he had never been more impressed with a man's intellect than he had been with Goebel's.

Political career

Kentucky Senate 

In 1887, James William Bryan vacated his seat in the Kentucky Senate to pursue the office of lieutenant governor. Goebel decided to seek election to the vacant seat representing Covington. He campaigned on the platform of railroad regulation and labor causes. Like Stevenson, he insisted on the right of the people to control chartered corporations. The Union Labor Party had risen to power in the area with a platform similar to Goebel's. However, while Goebel had to stick close to his allies in the Democratic Party, the Union Labor Party courted the votes of both Democrats and Republicans and made the election close, which was decided in Goebel's favor by just 56 votes. During his first term as senator, the State Railroad Commission increased to over $3,000,000 tax evaluation on the property of Louisville and Nashville Railroad. A proposal from pro-railroad legislators in the Kentucky House of Representatives to abolish Kentucky's Railroad Commission was passed and sent to the Senate. Cassius Marcellus Clay responded by proposing a committee to investigate lobbying by the railroad industry. Goebel served on the committee, which uncovered significant violations by the railroad lobby. He also helped defeat the bill to abolish the Railroad Commission in the Senate. These actions increased his popularity and he was elected senator unopposed in 1889 for a full term. Goebel was well able to broker deals with fellow lawmakers and was equally able and willing to break the deals if a better deal came along. His tendency to use the state's political machinery to advance his agenda earned him the nickname "William the Conqueror".

Goebel served as a delegate to Kentucky's fourth constitutional convention in 1890, which produced the current Constitution of Kentucky. Despite being a delegate, Goebel showed little interest in participating in the process of creating a new Constitution. The convention was in session for approximately 250 days, but Goebel was present for approximately only 100 days. However, he did secure the inclusion of the Railroad Commission in the new Constitution. As a Constitutional entity, the Commission could only be abolished by an amendment ratified by a popular vote. This effectively protected the Commission from ever being unilaterally dismantled by the General Assembly. Klotter wrote, "Goebel used the constitution as a vehicle to enact laws which he had not been able to pass in the more conservative legislature." Goebel won another term in 1893 by a three-to-one margin over his Republican opponent. By 1894, he had been elected as the President pro tempore of the Kentucky Senate.

Duel with John Sanford

In 1895, Goebel engaged in what many observers considered to be a duel with John Lawrence Sanford. Sanford, a former Confederate general staff officer turned cashier, had clashed with Goebel before. Goebel's successful campaign to remove tolls from some of Kentucky's turnpikes cost Sanford a large amount of money. Many believed that Sanford had blocked Goebel's appointment to the Kentucky Court of Appeals, in retaliation. Incensed, Goebel had written an article in a local newspaper referring to Sanford as "Gonorrhea John." On April 11, 1895, Goebel and two acquaintances went to Covington to cash a check. Goebel suggested they avoid Sanford's bank, but Sanford, standing outside the bank, spoke to the men before they could cross the street to a different bank. Sanford greeted Goebel's friends, offering them his left hand. However, Goebel noticed that Sanford's right hand was on a pistol concealed in his pocket. Having come armed himself, Goebel clutched his revolver in his pocket. Sanford confronted Goebel and said, "I understand that you assume authorship of that article." "I do", replied Goebel.

The shooting took place at 1:30 p.m. According to the witnesses, both men then drew their pistols, but no one was sure which had fired first. One of the witnesses – W. J. Hendricks, the attorney general of Kentucky, said "I don't know who shot first, the shots were so close together." Another witness, Frank P. Helm, said "I was right up against them and really thought at first that I had, myself, been shot." Sanford's bullet passed through Goebel's coat and ripped his trousers, but left him uninjured. Goebel's shot fatally struck Sanford in the head; Sanford died five hours later. Goebel pled self-defense and was acquitted. The acquittal was significant because the Kentucky constitution prohibited dueling. If Goebel had been convicted of dueling, he would have been ineligible to hold any public office. The shooting made Goebel unpopular among Kentucky's Confederate veterans, who also noted his non-southern background and his father's service in the Union army.

Goebel Election Law
Kentucky Democrats, who controlled the General Assembly believed that county election commissioners had been unfair in selecting local election officials, and had contributed to the election of Republican governor William O. Bradley in 1895. Goebel proposed a bill, known as the "Goebel Election Law", which passed along strict party lines and over Governor Bradley's veto, created a three-member state election commission, appointed by the General Assembly, to choose the county election commissioners. It allowed the Democratic-controlled General Assembly to appoint only Democrats to the election commission. Many voters decried the bill as a self-serving attempt by Goebel to increase his political power, and the election board remained a controversial issue until its abolition in a special session of the legislature in 1900. Goebel became the subject of much opposition from constituencies of both parties in Kentucky after the passage of the law.

Gubernatorial election of 1899

In 1896, when William Jennings Bryan electrified the Democratic National Convention with his Cross of Gold speech and won the nomination for president, many delegates from Kentucky bolted the convention. Various Kentuckian politicians believed that free silver was a populist idea, and it did not belong to the Democratic Party. Subsequently, Republican William McKinley won the 1896 presidential election, carrying Kentucky. Author Nicholas C. Burckel believed that this set the stage for "horripilating gubernatorial election of 1899". Three men sought the Democratic nomination for governor at the 1899 party convention in Louisville – Goebel, Parker Watkins Hardin, and William Johnson Stone. When Hardin appeared to be the front-runner for the nomination, Stone and Goebel agreed to work together against him. They concluded that Stone's supporters would endorse whomever Goebel picked to preside over the convention. In exchange, half the delegates from Louisville, who were pledged to Goebel, would vote to nominate Stone. Goebel would then drop out of the race, but would name many of the other officials on the ticket. Both men agreed that, should one of them be defeated or withdraw from the race, they would encourage their delegates to vote for the other rather than support Hardin. As word of the plan spread, Hardin dropped out of the race, believing he would be beaten by the Stone–Goebel alliance. When the convention convened on June 24, several chaotic ballots resulted in no clear majority for anyone, and Goebel's hand-picked chairman announced the man with the lowest vote total in the next canvass would be dropped, which turned out to be Stone. This put Stone's supporters in a difficult position, and were forced to choose between Hardin, who was seen as a pawn of the railroads, or Goebel. Enough of them sided with Goebel to give him the nomination. Goebel's tactics, while not illegal, were unpopular and divided the party. A disgruntled faction calling themselves the "Honest Election Democrats" held a separate convention in Lexington and nominated John Y. Brown as their gubernatorial candidate. 

Republican William S. Taylor defeated both Democratic candidates in the general election, but his margin over Goebel was only 2,383 votes. Democrats in the General Assembly began making accusations of voting irregularities in some counties, but in a surprise decision, the Board of Elections created by the Goebel Election Law, manned by three hand-picked pro-Goebel Democrats, ruled 2–1 that the disputed ballots should count, saying the law gave them no legal power to reverse the official county results and that under the Kentucky Constitution the power to review the election lay in the General Assembly. The Assembly then invalidated enough Republican ballots to give the election to Goebel. The Assembly's Republican minority was incensed, as were voters in traditionally Republican districts. For several days, the state hovered on the brink of a possible civil war.

Assassination and legacy

Shooting and death 
While the election results remained in dispute, Goebel, despite being warned of a rumored assassination plot against him, walked flanked by two bodyguards to the Old State Capitol on the morning of January 30, 1900. Reports conflict about what happened, but some five or six shots were fired from the nearby State Building, one striking Goebel in the chest and wounding him seriously. Taylor, serving as governor pending a final decision on the election, called out the militia and ordered the General Assembly into a special session in London, Kentucky – a Republican area. The Republican minority obeyed the call and went to London. Democrats resisted the move, many going instead to Louisville. Both groups claimed authority, but the Republicans were too few to muster a quorum. That evening, the day after being shot, Goebel was sworn in as governor. In his only act, Goebel signed a proclamation to dissolve the militia called up by Taylor, which was ignored by the militia's Republican commander. Despite the care of 18 physicians, Goebel died the afternoon of February 3, 1900. Journalists recalled his last words as "Tell my friends to be brave, fearless, and loyal to the common people." Skeptic Irvin S. Cobb uncovered another story from some in the room at the time. On having eaten his last meal, the governor supposedly remarked "Doc, that was a damned bad oyster." Goebel remains the only American governor ever assassinated while in office. In respect of Goebel's displeasure with the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, his body was transported not by the L&N direct line, but circuitously from his hometown of Covington north across the Ohio River to Cincinnati, and then south to Frankfort on the Queen and Crescent Railroad.

After Goebel's death, amid controversy, the Kentucky Court of Appeals ruled that the General Assembly had acted legally in declaring Goebel the winner of the election. That decision was appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States. Arguments were presented in the case Taylor v. Beckham on April 30, 1900, but on May 21, the justices decided 8–1 not to hear the case, allowing the Court of Appeals' decision to stand. Goebel's lieutenant governor J. C. W. Beckham ascended to the governorship.

Trials, investigations, and legacy 
During the ensuing assassination investigation, suspicion naturally focused on deposed governor Taylor, who fled to Indianapolis, under the looming threat of indictment. The governor of Indiana refused to extradite Taylor, and he was thus never questioned about his knowledge of the plot to kill Goebel. Taylor was later pardoned in 1909 by Beckham's successor, Republican governor Augustus E. Willson. Sixteen people, including Taylor, were eventually indicted in Goebel's assassination. Three accepted immunity from prosecution in exchange for testimony. Only five ever went to trial, two of those being acquitted. Convictions were handed down against Taylor's Secretary of State Caleb Powers, Henry Youtsey, and Jim Howard. The prosecution charged that Powers was the mastermind, having a political opponent killed so that Taylor could stay in office. Youtsey was an alleged intermediary, and Howard, who was said to have been in Frankfort to seek a pardon from Taylor for the killing of a man in a family feud, was accused of being the actual assassin. Republican appeal courts overturned Powers' and Howard's convictions, though Powers was tried three more times, resulting in two convictions and a hung jury, and Howard was tried and convicted twice more. Both men were pardoned in 1908 by Willson. Youtsey, who received a life imprisonment, did not appeal, but after two years in prison, he turned state's evidence. In Howard's second trial, Youtsey claimed that Taylor had discussed an assassination plot with Youtsey and Howard. He backed the prosecution's claims that Taylor and Powers worked out the details, he acted as an intermediary, and Howard fired the shot. On cross-examination, the defense pointed out contradictions in the details of Youtsey's story, but Howard was still convicted. Youtsey was paroled in 1916 and was pardoned in 1919 by Democratic governor James D. Black. Of those allegedly involved in the killing: Taylor died in 1928; Powers died in 1932; Youtsey died in 1942. Most historians agree that the identity of the assassin of Goebel is unclear. Goebel Avenue in Elkton, Kentucky, and Goebel Park in Covington, Kentucky are named in Goebel's honor.

See also 

 History of Kentucky
 List of assassinated American politicians
 List of unsolved murders

Notes

References

Works cited

Further reading

 

1856 births
1900 deaths
1900 murders in the United States
19th-century American politicians
American people of German descent
Assassinated American politicians
Burials at Frankfort Cemetery
Deaths by firearm in Kentucky
Democratic Party state governors of the United States
American duellists
Governors of Kentucky
Kentucky Democrats
Kentucky state senators
Kenyon College alumni
Male murder victims
People from Carbondale, Pennsylvania
People murdered in Kentucky
Populism in the United States
University of Cincinnati alumni
Unsolved murders in the United States Paul Gordon Goebel (May 28, 1901 – January 26, 1988) was an American football end who played for the University of Michigan Wolverines from 1920 to 1922. He was an All-American in 1921 and was the team's captain in 1922. He played professional football from 1923 to 1926 with the Columbus Tigers, Chicago Bears, and New York Yankees. He was named to the NFL All-Pro team in 1923 and 1924.

After his football career ended, he operated a sporting good store in Grand Rapids. He officiated football games for the Big Ten Conference for 16 years and also served in the U.S. Navy on an aircraft carrier in World War II. He was active in Republican Party politics in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and was one of the organizers of a reform movement to oust the city's political boss, Frank McKay. As an anti-McKay reform candidate, Goebel was three times elected mayor of Grand Rapids in the 1950s. He was later elected to the University of Michigan Board of Regents, where he served from 1962 to 1970.

Goebel also played an important role in the career of U.S. President Gerald R. Ford. Goebel was friends with Ford's mother and stepfather and recommended Ford to head football coach Harry Kipke at the University of Michigan. When Ford returned from World War II, Goebel urged him to run for U.S. Congress and was part of the original Ford-for-Congress committee. Goebel was later the chairman of a committee formed in 1960 to name Ford as the Republican Party's Vice Presidential candidate on the ticket with Richard Nixon.

Football player at the University of Michigan 

Goebel enrolled at the University of Michigan in 1919. He studied engineering and received his degree in 1923. While at Michigan, he played football under head coach Fielding H. Yost. He played at the end where he developed a reputation as one of the country's best forward pass receivers and as a tenacious defensive player. At 6-feet, 3-inches, Goebel was a tall player in his era. He started seven games in each of the 1920 and 1921 seasons at right end for the Wolverines, and was limited due to injury to five games in 1922. In 1921, he was chosen as an All-American and was voted the captain of the 1922 team. Goebel also excelled as an honor student in the University's engineering school. Goebel also earned the Big Ten Conference Medal of Honor for proficiency in academics and athletics.

Goebel's steel knee brace 
Prior to the 1922 season, Goebel "threw out his knee" and was fitted with a steel hinge – an early version of a knee brace. However, the steel contraption required oiling and overheated when the oil dried, thus limiting Goebel's ability to play a complete game in 1922. One 1922 newspaper article described Goebel's knee brace this way: "To enable Goebel to play, the Michigan trainers devised a steel brace – a hinge. This apparatus attached above and below the knee gave Goebel fairly good leg action because of the hinge. Before each game, Goebel liberally oiled the hinge to get free action because of the hinge." Goebel's playing time was limited because "the constant action would dry the oil and then the steel would become so hot that Goebel could not continue playing." During the 1922 game against Illinois, Goebel's skin was burned by the steel.

Dedication Day at Ohio Stadium 
Despite the limitations of the knee brace, Goebel led the Wolverines to victory in the first game played at Ohio Stadium. The official "Dedication Day" for the stadium was October 21, 1922, and the opponent was Michigan. Ohio State fans recalled for years afterward how Goebel and his teammate Harry Kipke managed to turn Dedication Day sour for the Buckeyes. Michigan shut out the Buckeyes, 19–0, with Goebel and Kipke scoring all the points. In the first period, Goebel blocked a punt and then kicked a long field goal from the 30-yard line for the game's first points. He also penetrated into the Ohio State backfield in the second quarter to recover a fumble. As the game wore on, the Buckeyes "seemed to realize (Goebel's) importance in the Michigan lineup because he was forced to take plenty of punishment." Football writer Billy Evans described Goebel's performance against Ohio State this way: 

No end in recent years has played a greater game (than) that which Goebel put up against Ohio State. For three periods Goebel was the mainspring of the Michigan eleven. He seemed to be in every play. It was always Goebel who was gumming things up for State. No man could go through an entire game at the speed with which Goebel played in the first three quarters. It was beyond the power of any human being. With a few minutes to play in the third period the big fellow practically collapsed. Even when three or four of his teammates were carrying him off the field the old spirit was still there. He tried to induce his teammates that he was able to play, and tried to break away from their grasp, but the punch was gone and he was forced to give way as the big crowd cheered him to the echo. If any one man made possible the defeat of State by Michigan, it was Captain Paul Goebel.  

The rotunda at Ohio Stadium is painted with maize flowers on a blue background due to the outcome of the 1922 dedication game against, an enduring tribute to Goebel's performance that day. Another writer summed up Goebel's 1922 season: "Captain Paul Goebel of Michigan has commanded no little attention this season. He is fast and furious. His particular forte lies in his ability to not only plunge in and break up the interference of the opposing team, but after so doing, nail the man with the ball and down him in his tracks."

The tradition of the #1 jersey at Michigan 
Goebel was particularly adept as a pass receiver. A 1923 wire service report in the Capital Times noted that Goebel was "considered one of the best ends in the country and his work on receiving forward passes hasn't been excelled on the gridiron." In what would become a tradition at Michigan 60 years later, Goebel was the first All-American receiver at Michigan to wear the #1 jersey. Others to follow that tradition are Anthony Carter, Derrick Alexander, David Terrell, and Braylon Edwards.

The death of Bernard Kirk 
Across the field from right end Goebel, Bernard Kirk played left end for the Wolverines in 1921 and 1922. Kirk was a talented player who was set to graduate with Goebel in 1923. However, Kirk died in an automobile accident on December 17, 1922. Goebel was a pall-bearer along with Harry Kipke, Frank Steketee, and other Michigan football players at Kirk's funeral in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Kirk had been a popular figure, and his funeral was covered widely in the national press, with Michigan Governor Alex Groesbeck, U-M President Marion LeRoy Burton, and the coaches of the Big Ten Conference football teams all in attendance.

Goebel also served years later as a pall bearer at the funeral of his coach, Fielding H. Yost, in August 1946.

Professional football 
In February 1923, Goebel refused an offer to become the head football coach at Wichita State University (then known as Fairmount College), saying he planned to enter the engineering profession after graduation. Instead, Goebel opted to play professional football. He played professional football for the Columbus Tigers from 1923–1925, the Chicago Bears in 1925, and the New York Yankees (the football team) in 1926. In his first year in the NFL, Goebel played in all ten of the team's games for the Columbus Tigers and was named to the All-Pro Team. He threw one touchdown pass and caught another. He was credited with eight points scored including two extra points.

In 1924, Goebel was again selected as an All-Pro player with the Tigers, playing in ten games, making two touchdown receptions, and returning a fumble for a touchdown. In all, he was credited with three touchdowns and 18 points in 1924. While playing end for the Columbus Tigers in 1924, Goebel was involved in one of the oddest plays in NFL history. Goebel was the intended receiver of a forward pass, but the ball popped out of his arms and was snatched out of the air by Oscar Knop of the Chicago Bears. Knop began running for the goal line with the ball, but he was running the wrong way toward a safety. After running 30 yards, Knop was caught from behind and tackled by his teammate Ed Healey on the four-yard line.

In 1926, Goebel played for the Yankees alongside Red Grange. After the close of the 1926 football season, he went to Los Angeles where he took a minor role in Grange's latest film. In May 1927, Goebel announced his retirement from professional football. He said he would devote his time to the sporting goods store he operated in Grand Rapids. Goebel had been playing professional football every season since he finished at Michigan.

Football official and sporting good businessman 
After retiring from professional football, Goebel worked in his sporting good business in Grand Rapids, and also worked during football season as a game official for the Big Ten Conference. For 16 years between 1935 and 1952, he was a Big Ten football official. He also officiated in Rose Bowl, Notre Dame, and Army-Navy games.

Goebel played a role in a famous Ohio State-Illinois game on November 13, 1943. The game was Paul Brown's last game as coach of the Buckeyes. With the score tied 26–26, Ohio State threw an incomplete forward pass into the end zone as the gun sounded. The game appeared to have ended in a tie, the teams left the field, and the stands emptied. However, Ohio State assistant coach Ernie Godfrey had noticed Goebel, who was the head linesman, drop a handkerchief to signal a penalty. On hearing the gun sound, Goebel had picked up the handkerchief and put it back in his back pocket. Godfrey confronted Goebel, who conceded that Illinois was offsides. Twenty minutes later, the teams came back onto the field and the Buckeyes kicked a 33-yard field goal to give Coach Brown a 29–26 win in his final game.

During World War II, Goebel served in the U.S. Navy as Lieutenant Commander on an aircraft carrier. His final game as an official was the 1952 Rose Bowl between Illinois and Stanford, in which he was the head linesman.

Goebel was also a fisherman, winning the title of Trout King at the National Trout Festival in 1949.

Relationship with Gerald R. Ford 

Goebel was a friend of Gerald R. Ford's mother and stepfather in Grand Rapids. Goebel played an important role in guiding Ford to the University of Michigan. When Ford graduated from Grand Rapids South High School, Goebel recognized Ford's ability as a football player and recommended him to his former teammate Harry Kipke, who had taken over as Michigan's head football coach. Kipke recruited Ford, who became Michigan's Most Valuable Player in 1934.

In 1940, Goebel was part of a citizen's group in Grand Rapids seeking to overthrow Grand Rapids' political boss, Frank McKay. McKay had dismissed Ford's political interest in 1940, and this led to a long political alliance between Goebel and Ford. Ford went to work with Goebel as part of the anti-McKay citizen's group. Together, they organized the "Home Front," the purpose of which was to throw out Boss McKay. Ford was elected president of the organization, his first experience in political organizing.

Ford and Goebel both served in the U.S. Navy during World War II, and after the war, Ford urged Goebel to run for Congress against the incumbent, an isolationist named Barney Jonkman. Goebel declined to run, but suggested to Ford that, "if you think he ought to be beaten, why don't you run?" Ford did run for Congress in 1948, and Goebel was one of his close circle of early supporters, the original Ford-for-Congress group. Ford won the election and won re-election for twelve more terms. In 1960, Goebel was a leader in the movement to nominate Ford as the Vice Presidential candidate on the ticket with Richard Nixon, serving as Chairman of the "Ford for Vice President Committee" at the Republican National Convention in Chicago.

When Goebel's son, Paul G. Goebel, Jr., ran for Ford's Congressional seat in 1974, then President Ford returned to Grand Rapids to campaign for Goebel's son. Ford delivered a speech at Calvin College in Grand Rapids the week before the election in which he said: "Paul Goebel I have known since he was just a lad. His dad knew me when I was back at South High—an inspired if not very competent football player. But I have known the Goebel family a long time, and they are strong and they are tall, and they are the kind of people who are dedicated to public service. Paul, Jr.'s, father was; Paul, Jr., himself is. And I have seen nothing but the finest in that family, and young Paul, he epitomizes all the great characteristics of that family."

Political career

Mayor of Grand Rapids 
Goebel himself ran for office in 1950. He ran for mayor of Grand Rapids as part of the same anti-McKay reform movement that brought Gerald Ford to office. According to one newspaper account, Goebel "spearheaded a reform movement which brought him into office in 1950," ousting incumbent George W. Welsh, who had been elected mayor five times and also served as the state's lieutenant governor. At the time, Goebel was the partner in a sporting goods store and was described in the press as tall and rangy, a candidate "who looks like a blond Abraham Lincoln without a beard." Goebel was re-elected in 1952 for a second two-year term. In October 1953, Goebel announced he would not run for a third term, saying he had no further political ambitions and would devote his time to his family and business. Within a short time, however, he changed his mind and ran for a third term with the support of the reformist Citizens Action Group. In February 1954, Goebel received the most votes of any candidate in his third race for mayor (19,564 for Goebel to 10,831 for George Veldman), but he failed to secure a majority, and a runoff was held. Veldman defeated Goebel in the runoff by a margin of 203 votes. Goebel requested a recount, but he was unsuccessful. In 1956, he won re-election as mayor of Grand Rapids and served a final term from 1956–1958. In 1957, Goebel was included in published lists of potential candidates to run as the Republican candidate for governor. In January 1958, Goebel announced that he would not seek re-election as mayor. He said he had no plans to seek another political office.

University of Michigan Board of Regents 
In 1962, Goebel returned to politics, winning a seat on the Board of Regents of the University of Michigan, where he served from 1962–1970. In 1968, the Regents voted to eliminate curfews for all women students in residence halls and to allow each housing unit to set its own visitation hours. Goebel was the sole dissenter, saying: "If my judgment is proved wrong, no one will be happier than I." In July 1970, Goebel announced that he would retire from the Regents at the end of his term on December 31, 1970. At age 69, he said the expected strain of another campaign influenced his decision.

Other civic and political roles 
Through the 1950s and 1960s, Goebel also occupied himself with other civic and political projects, including serving as a member of the YMCA International World Service Committee in the 1960s, representing Governor George Romney and the State of Michigan at the 1965 Rose Bowl game, acting as chairman of the national committee of the University of Michigan in the mid-1960s to raise $55 million, acting as a delegate to Republican National Convention in 1956 and a delegate to Michigan state constitutional convention from 1961–1962, and serving as a member of Michigan Republican State Central Committee in 1969. He was also a member of the State of Michigan Higher Education Assistance Authority, Chairman of the State of Michigan Board of Ethics, Director of the U-M National Alumni Association and President of the Varsity "M" Club. Goebel was a Congregationalist and a member of the Freemasons, the Rotary Club, and Tau Beta Pi.

Family 
Goebel's wife, Margaret Goebel, was a graduate nurse, a columnist for a Grand Rapids newspaper, and Chairman of Governor George Romney's Commission on the Status of Women. She also worked with the Grand Rapids Red Cross, the Council on World Affairs, the Urban League and was appointed by President Kennedy in 1962 to the Civil Defense Advisory Council. Goebel and his wife had two children. Their son Paul G. Goebel, Jr., was an aide to Rep. Gerald R. Ford and Vice President Richard M. Nixon. Paul Gobel, Jr., also operated an insurance business in Grand Rapids known as the Paul Goebel group.

Honors and accolades 
Goebel's honors over the years include the following:
 Selected as an All-American in 1921.
 Voted captain of the 1922 Michigan Wolverines football team.
 Named to the NFL "All-Pro" team in 1923 and 1924.
 In 1968, several donors made gifts to the University of Michigan College of Engineering to establish an endowed chair for the Paul G. Goebel Professor of Engineering. The gifts came from donors who sought to honor Goebel for his contributions to the University. In April 1993, Yoram Koren was named as the Goebel Professor of Engineering.
 In 1971, Goebel was given the Distinguished Alumni Service Award. The award, which is presented annually, recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves "by reason of services performed on behalf of the University of Michigan, or in connection with its organized alumni activities." The Distinguished Alumni Service Award is the highest honor the Alumni Association can bestow upon an alumna/us on behalf of the University.
 Inducted into Grand Rapids Sports Hall of Fame in 1971.
 In 1984, Goebel was the fourth recipient of the Ufer Award. Since 1981, the Ufer Award has been presented each year to a Letterwinners "M" Club member in recognition for his or her outstanding service to the University of Michigan Athletic Program.
 Inducted into the University of Michigan Hall of Honor in 1981. Only seven football players (Bennie Oosterbaan, Gerald Ford, Tom Harmon, Willie Heston, Germany Schulz, Ron Kramer, and Benny Friedman) were inducted into the Hall of Honor before Goebel.
 The U-M Club of Grand Rapids each year awards the Paul G. Goebel, Sr., Distinguished Alumni in Athletic Awards. Past recipients include Julius Franks.

See also 
 1922 College Football All-America Team
 University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor
 List of mayors of Grand Rapids, Michigan
 List of Michigan Wolverines football All-Americans
 Board of Regents of the University of Michigan

References

External links 

 Bentley Library Profile and Photograph of Paul Goebel
 Political Graveyard Profile of Paul Goebel

1901 births
1988 deaths
American football ends
Michigan Wolverines football players
Columbus Tigers players
New York Yankees (AFL) players
Mayors of Grand Rapids, Michigan
Michigan Republicans
Regents of the University of Michigan
Players of American football from Grand Rapids, Michigan
20th-century American politicians